OAS assistant secretary-general concludes two-day working visit to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

Assistant Secretary-General of the Organization of American States (OAS), H.E. Nestor Mendez (L) and Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves

KINGSTOWN, St Vincent — Assistant secretary-general of the Organization of American States (OAS), H.E. Nestor Mendez, last week, concluded a two-day working visit with the government of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Participants at the meeting included prime minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves; minister of agriculture Saboto Caesar; and minister of education, St Clair Prince. The discussion surrounded bilateral opportunities and future cooperation between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and the OAS.

Ambassador Mendez, a national of Belize, highlighted the work of the OAS on development matters such as education and youth entrepreneurship. He made mention of the opportunities made available to the Vincentian youth through the OAS undergraduate and graduate scholarships and encouraged youth participation in the Talent and Innovation competitions hosted by the OAS through the Young Americas Business Trust (YABT). His message was one of youth empowerment and entrepreneurship, emphasising not only the need to tap into the creative minds for new ideas but also to shape the youth and immerse in the global community through bilingualism capabilities.

Ambassador Mendez also held meetings with the director for the Centre for Enterprise Development (CED), Felix Lewis and director of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Community College, Nigel Scott, reinforcing the focus on the youth. Director of CED, Felix Lewis shared with the assistant secretary-general some of the activities and programmes which the Centre has in the pipeline, including a curriculum for entrepreneurship and innovation, an initiative that could potentially see the OAS as a partner to aid its implementation.

Ambassador Mendez accompanied on his two-day visit by chief of staff, La Celia A. Prince, former ambassador of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines to the OAS and the United States of America

Director Scott was pleased to hear about the work that the OAS is doing in the field of teacher training through the Inter-American Teacher Training Network (ITEN) and was keen on the SVGCC student body learning more about scholarship opportunities in the hemisphere which would afford the students’ exposure to a foreign language.